


Unveil: Black Mask

by angge_fernandez



Series: Stray Series [2]
Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Not K-Pop Idols, Angst, Detectives, M/M, Police officers, it's a good one though, may contain triggering content, there also may be inaccuracy too, there's a bit of voilence mentioned in this story, they work in the force here, well most of them, with a bit of crack
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-15
Updated: 2020-04-30
Packaged: 2021-03-02 03:40:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 16,410
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23658508
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/angge_fernandez/pseuds/angge_fernandez
Summary: Minho is a detective who's sent to hunt down one of Seoul's most dangerous criminal. Boy is he in for a surprise.
Relationships: Han Jisung | Han/Lee Minho | Lee Know
Series: Stray Series [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1467358
Comments: 25
Kudos: 81





	1. [1]

**Author's Note:**

> WARNING: Before reading, please be informed that this story may contain inaccuracies and triggering content.

"Finally!"

Minho groaned as he put the last folder back onto his desk. He's been working on paperwork for different cases for the past 6 hours.

Chief Yang left him all these cases since the chief thinks he is more capable of solving them. Plus it's his job so...

Being a 1st-grade detective used to be cool for Minho. But now it's just a pain in the neck. He thought that once he got promoted to a higher rank, things will be a bit easier for him. Obviously he was wrong.

Minho leaned back in his chair and stared at the ceiling, trying to relax his eyes and his fried brain. He groaned when he remembered he still has more reports to work on.

He glanced at the wall clock in his office and saw the clock read '1:44 PM'. Minho sighed before closing his eyes to try and get even just a little nap.

It was still early but considering he didn't sleep a wink last night, he really thinks it's the best time to nap.

Being a high-rank detective required him to stay awake for most of the day, barely getting enough sleep at night and just living off of coffee and energy drinks.

Just as Minho was about to fall asleep, he was woken up by a knock on his door. He rubbed his eyes trying to get the sleep off of it and told the person knocking to come in.

The door opened revealing Chan, also a 1st-grade detective from the same department.

"What's up hyung?" Minho asked, gesturing for the other to sit down

He and Chan are pretty close. They used to go to the same high school, and now they have the same workplace. Small world right?

"Chief Yang wants to see you." Chan said, standing by the door

Minho stared at Chan and immediately noticed his sour face.

"Let me guess. He left you a bunch of new cases again huh?" Minho smirked as he stood up, fixing his bomber jacket

Chan groaned, "Korea never runs out of crimes!" Chan complained as he and Minho walked out of the younger's office

Minho laughed, "The whole world is filled with crimes hyung, what do you expect? You're one of the best detectives here anyway, you can do it."

Chan glared at Minho, "I haven't slept a wink in 2 days, compliments do NOT make it any better."

Chan is also one of the best detectives in their whole department. The older male got the job before Minho did so Chan is basically Minho's senior, and Minho looks up to Chan as he really admires how he does his job.

Rather than for the money, he focuses on giving justice to the people. Which is exactly what Minho wants to do too.

Although looking at him now makes Minho want to quit his job and just go for a fast food chain service crew or something. But of course, he wouldn't do that.

"Hey I'll see you later okay? I'm dropping by Felix's office to make sure he isn't overworking himself." Chan waved before walking off

Felix is another friend of theirs who recently just got promoted to being a detective, but he works in a different department. Felix works in the Child Protection Department while Chan works in the Criminal Investigations Department along with Minho.

Minho waved as Chan walked off and made his way to Chief Yang's office, greeting his co-workers on the way.

Minho turned the corner and saw the chief's door up ahead. When he was only a few feet away, Minho felt his phone vibrate, indicating that a message was received.

Minho stopped in his tracks and pulled out his phone. He saw that he received a message from his one and only boyfriend, Han Jisung.

**[ Yah, you better not be overworking yourself, or I will personally bring you dinner then drag you to sleep on the couch just so you could rest. I love you lots and always stay safe. -🐿💕 ]**

Minho giggled before quickly typing up a reply saying he already ate and will sleep later. Once sent, Minho proceeded to head to the chief's office door and knocked three times.

"Come in."

Minho opened the door and saw the chief skimming through a bunch of folders.

"Sit down Minho." Chief Yang said pointing at one of the 2 chairs in front of his desk

Minho sat down without another word and waited for the chief to start talking. He knew better than to rush him and ask questions. The last time he did, he ended up with a folder smushed against his face.

After a few moments, Chief Yang closed the folder he was reading and turned to Minho.

"Do you know why I called you here?" Chief Yang asked, his hands resting on top of the wooden desk

Minho put on a thinking face, "Well I haven't passed any of my paperworks yet so that's probably why." Minho shrugged

Yeah, Minho may be a 1st grade detective, but he barely follows deadlines. All he wants to do is solve crimes without having to write a bunch of reports about it right after. It's a bit surpising how he isn't fired yet.

Chief Yang sighed, "We will talk about that later. But that's not what I meant."

Minho laughed, "I know, I know. So what's this about?" Minho said, his face turning serious

Chief Kim stared at Minho for a few seconds before saying his next few words that Minho wished he heard wrong.

" **I'm assigning the case 'Unveil: Black Mask' to you.** "

Minho blinked repeatedly, his face showing disbelief, "Wait aren't the officers working on this case?"

"The case is getting bigger. We need a detective for this. I'm assigning this to you now."

Minho scoffed, "Okay first of all, is this a request or a command? Plus, I have a buttload of active cases to deal with."

' **Unveil: Black Mask** ' is a case that first started out about a month ago when people started going missing then being found dead with the suspect being a man in a black mask; hence the name.

"A command. I can appoint your cases to the other detectives from your department, they're all easier anyway. I need you to focus on Black Mask." Chief Yang said, reaching for a folder beside him

The chief opened the folder and placed it in front of Minho, "A few days ago, he took out a teacher from a middle school. Unfortunate and merciless."

Minho took the folder and examined the info shown. Black Mask is currently Seoul's best criminal. Kind of a bad title, but he really is that good.

For every crime he commits, not a single track is left. The bodies are left dead but there are no tracks left behind.

No fingerprints, no hair strands, no nothing.

He is way too clean and leaves completely no mark aside from the cameras. He's only ever seen through security cameras or a few witnesses, that's how they found out he wore black masks.

They don't know if he does that on purpose or he's not as smart as they think.

"You're our last hope Minho. I can't pass this to Chan yet. I've been giving him a bunch of other cases recently and I don't think he'll be able to take it."

Minho's brows furrowed, "What about me then? Am I a fly here? You give me cases too you know?"

Chief Yang rolled his eyes, "You're still sane. He isn't. He drank soy sauce this morning instead of coffee, and he wasn't even bothered by it."

Minho stared at the folders in front of him, containing all of the file cases linked to Black Mask.

"Give it a shot Minho. I know you can do it." Chief Yang said, offering Minho a smile

Minho thought for a moment before sighing, " **Fine. I'll do it**."


	2. [2]

"You look like your cat just rejected your cuddles."

Minho huffed as he sat across from Chan at the table in the cafeteria. Both Chan and Felix were eating their late dinner when Minho stepped in the cafeteria with a glum look.

"Yeah, what's wrong? What did Chief Yang say?" Felix asked from beside Chan as he took a bite of his food

"Chief Yang just assigned the Black Mask case to me." Minho said, his face completely blank

He doesn't know what to do in this situation, heck he doesn't even know what to feel. He doesn't know if he'll be able to crack this case. If it were Chan, he knew the older could do it.

Minho doesn't really think he's the same level as Chan even if they're in the same rank. Minho thinks there's still a lot for him to learn.

Chan choked, "The Black Mask case?? For real??"

Minho's head snapped towards Chan with a glare, "Yes for real!! Why would I joke about something like that??"

Chan glared back, "You once told me you were promoted as a 1st-grade detective, but it was actually 2nd. You can't blame me for doubting you."

Minho shut his mouth after Chan's statement. What? He likes pranks.

"This is a huge deal for you hyung, congrats. Black Mask is the talk of the town, you'll be instant famous if you manage to crack this one." Felix cheered

"Yeah thanks, no pressure." Minho deadpanned

Felix only smiled brighter, "You're welcome."

"So how much time is he giving you?" Chan asked

Chan was about to drink when Felix stopped him, "That's the ketchup sweetie."

Felix took the ketchup bottle from Chan's hand and replaced it with his tumbler as Minho shook his head.

Guess Chief Yang isn't kidding huh?

"He gave me 2 months tops to work on it."

The two nodded understandingly, "Pretty sure you'll solve it no time. You're Lee Minho, you can do it." Felix said, trying to encourage him even more

Minho sat there, dazed, "Cheer up, this is a good opportunity for you and you know that."

"And Chief Yang might give you a well-deserved break. Not to mention a raise." Felix added

"Yeah, plus Jisung will surely reward you with something good." Chan teased with a wink

Minho smacked Chan's arm, feeling his cheeks go red.

"Will you guys stop talking and just eat?"

The 2 laughed and continued eating, giving the boy a break as his face looks like he's about to explode.

Minho sat there in silence before standing up and telling the rest he'll try starting on his project now.

"Hey hyung, you can do it okay? We'll support you." Felix said with a bright smile, Chan nodding in acknowledgement beside him

Minho smiled and nodded at the two, thanking them then continuing the walk to his office. When Minho sat down, he literally just sat there staring at the stack of folders for 10 minutes as if they're going to suddenly tell him the answers.

Minho is quite shocked. In a span of 1 month, Black Mask managed to make 7 file cases. That's a lot.

Minho wondered if he really did work alone or if he had help. Minho glanced at the clock and saw that it was almost 12 AM.

He sighed before grabbing his keys, all his energy now completely drained. He walked out of his office, making sure that none of his electronics are left open, before locking the door.

"Seriously, this is the first time a case like this was assigned to me. I'm working on looking for a missing little girl, and I'm almost there! Now they're gonna take the case away from me??" Minho ranted as he laid on the couch

Jisung hummed, listening to his boyfriend's every word as he stroked Minho's hair, the older's head resting on his lap.

Minho and Jisung have been living together in an apartment for 4 years already. They first started living together when they were both still in college, but have been best friends since middle school. Highschool was when the two first started dating.

"I don't even know what to do with this Black Mask dude already. We have pretty good officers, yet they haven't found a single track." Minho sighed as Jisung held his hands, squeezing them tightly

"Have you even tried going through the file cases?" Jisung asked softly

Minho stared at Jisung before responding, "Well... no.."

Jisung chuckled, "Then how do you know it's that difficult if you haven't tried solving it yet?"

Minho sat up, holding his head for a moment as he felt lightheaded but soon recovering, "Sung, the officers working on it were our seniors. They're really experienced and really good."

Jisung smiled at Minho, "Just because it was hard for them, doesn't mean it'll be hard for you too. Detectives and officers are good in their own special way. Not all of them are the same." Jisung said, running his fingers along Minho's arm, sending shivers down the older's spine

"Give the case a chance. Who knows.. you might be the one who'll be able to crack it." Jisung said, cupping Minho's cheek

Minho instinctively leaned against Jisung's touch, craving for more. Jisung ran his thumb under Minho's eye, examining the bags under the older's eye.

He can't scold Minho since his own job requires sleepless nights too. They're both sleep-deprived but hey, at least they have each other.

Minho sighed, "Alright. I'll start reviewing the case when I get to work in a few hours. In the meantime, cuddles?" Minho pouted

Jisung laughed and let Minho snuggle against his chest. Cuddles always calms the two boys down. Especially when it's with each other.

Minho sighed, flipping through the pages of the file cases. He's been reading the info about the victims linked to Black Mask for the past 20 minutes, and so far, he's got no idea.

It's basically empty!

And the fact that he's only been sleeping for 2 hours for the past week is taking a toll on his brain.

Minho thought for a moment, remembering the officers' words from this morning.

 _"So far, we haven't found potential suspects yet. Every time we try to work on the case, another case comes in. Right now,_ _I really don't know if he's choosing his victims randomly or what."_

_"We haven't checked the recent security cameras yet. Ask Seungmin if you wanna check them out."_

Minho shook his head as he also remembered Chan eating tomatoes this morning instead of apples as he was walking by. Seriously, the guy needs a break.

Minho turned his attention back to the folder again. Black Mask is a smart man. He wouldn't just choose his victims randomly. Surely there MUST be a reason.

Minho flipped through the pages and started reading the victims' info for the 4th time that day, forcing his brain to focus.

This was going to be a really long day.


	3. [3 - File Cases]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The names listed below are not based on real people, any similarities are purely coincidental.

**[File Case #1** ]

VICTIM INFO:  
**Name:** _Park Minseok_  
**Age:** _2_ _8_  
**DOB:** _March 2, 199_ _1_  
**Sex:** _Male_  
**Nationality:** _Korean_  
**Occupation** **:** _CEO (Park Industries)_  
**Height:** _174 cm_  
**Weight:** _63 kg_

**Current status:**  
_Deceased_

**Date & Time found:   
** _Saturday, March 7, 2020 ; 2: 49 PM_

 **Location found:  
** _Forest, unnamed_

**Cause of death:**  
_13 bullet wounds (all over the body)_

**Leads:**  
_Black Mask_

**Reported missing by:**  
_Park Minhee, Daughter_

**Reported missing on:**  
_Wednesday, March 4, 2020 ; 7: 08 AM_

**Last Seen:**  
_Monday_ , _March 2, 2020_ _; 10: 23 PM_

**Reporter's Statement:**  
_"After the celebration of Dad's birthday, I got a text from him saying he'll be going somewhere. He didn't come back 'til the next morning so I tried contacting him but he didn't answer my calls and he never does that. I got worried."_

**Witnesses:**  
_None_

**Witness' Statement:**  
_None_

**Date & Time witnessed:**  
_None_

* * *

**[File Case #** **2** ]

VICTIM INFO:  
**Name:** _Ha Chunseo_  
**Age:** _19_  
**DOB:** _July 24,_ _200_ _0_  
**Sex:** Female  
**Nationality:** _Korean_  
**Occupation** **:** _S_ _tudent_  
**Height:** _155 cm_  
**Weight:** _53 kg_ **  
**

**Current status:**  
_Deceased_

**Date & Time found:  
** _Saturday, March 6, 2020 ; 7: 10 AM_

 **Location found:  
** _Seoul Central Park_

 **Cause of death:  
**2 _stab wounds (chest and stomach)_

**Leads:**  
_Black Mask_

**Reported missing by:**  
_Ha_ _Soojin_ _, Mother_

**Reported missing on:**  
_Friday, March 6, 2020 ; 4: 14 AM_

**Last Seen:**  
_Thursday_ , _March 5, 2020 ; 6: 23 AM_

**Reporter's Statement:**  
_"She hasn't come home from school and she hasn't called. She never does this, she's a good daughter. I'm worried something bad happened to her."_

**Witnesses:**  
Im Soomin, passerby

**Witness' Statement:**  
_"I was on my morning jog when this guy in a black mask started dragging this girl to a more isolated part of the park. I followed them secretly, then I saw the man stab the girl twice before running away. I called the cops right after."_

**Date & Time witnessed:**  
_Saturday, March 6, 2020 ; 7: 02 AM  
_

* * *

**[File Case #3]**

VICTIM INFO:  
**Name:** _N_ _a Yeonhee_  
**Age:** _23_  
**DOB:** _May 10, 199_ _6_  
**Sex:** _Fem_ _ale_  
**Nationality:** _Korean_  
**Occupation** **:** _Unemployed_  
**Height:** _159 cm_  
**Weight:** _56 kg_

**Current status:**  
_Deceased_

**Date & Time found: ** _  
Wednesday, March 11, 2020 ; 6: 44 AM_

 **Location found: _  
_** _Garbage can, beside Seoul National Hospital_

**Cause of death:**  
_1 bullet wound (head), burned (whole body)_

**Leads:**  
_Black Mask_

**Reported deceased by** **:**  
_Jang Wonjin, Passerby_

**Reported deceased on:**  
_Wednesday, March 11, 2020 ; 6: 32 AM_

**Reporter** **'s Statement:**  
_"I was walking to work when I saw a hand poking out of the big garbage can. Then I saw the girl's dead body inside."_

**Witnesses:**  
_None_

**Witnesses' Statement:**  
_None_

**Date & Time witnessed:**  
_None_

* * *

**[** **File Case #4]**

VICTIM INFO:  
**Name:** _Cha Dongh_ _un_  
**Age:** _63_  
**DOB:** _October 9, 1_ _9_ _56_  
**Sex:** _Male_  
**Nationality:** _Korean_  
**Occupation** **:** _Retired_  
**Height:** _172 cm_  
**Weight:** _73 kg_

**Current status:**  
_Deceased_

**Date & Time found: ** _  
Sunday, March 15, 2020 ; 9: 51 PM_

 **Location found:  
** _Alleyway, beside Eat Now! convenience store_

 **Cause of death:**  
3 _bullet wounds (head, chest and right leg)_

**Leads:**  
_Black Mask_

**Reported missing by:**  
_Cha Hani_ _,_ _Daughter_

**Reported missing on:**  
_Saturday, March 14, 2020 ; 2: 31 AM_

**Last Seen:**  
_Friday_ , _March 13, 2020 ; 9: 13 PM_

**Reporter's Statement:**  
_"He was supposed to buy from the store but he never came back. He didn't answer any of my calls either."_

**Witnesses:**  
_Park Hansul, store clerk_

**Witness' Statement:**  
_"I saw a man in a black mask and red sweater come up to him but I thought they knew each other since he followed the guy. Then I heard gun shots and the guy with the black mask started running away."_

**Date & Time witnessed:** _  
Sunday, March 15, 2020 ; 9: 32 PM  
_

* * *

**[File Case #5]**

VICTIM INFO:  
**Name:** _Jo Kwangseo_  
**Age:** _30_  
**DOB:** _August 22, 19_ _89_  
**Sex:** _Male_  
**Nationality:** _Korean_  
**Occupation** **:** _Salesman (Etude House)_  
**Height:** _176 cm_  
**Weight:** _67 kg_

**Current status:**  
_Deceased_

**Date & Time found: ** _  
Friday, March 20, 2020 ; 6: 28 PM_

 **Location found: _  
_** _Warehouse, unnamed_

**Cause of death:**  
_4 severe cuts (2 for each leg), 4 bullet wounds (head and torso, 2 for each)_

**Leads:**  
_Black Mask_

**Reported missing by:**  
_Lee Heejung_ _,_ _Co-worker_

 **Reported missing on:**  
_Tuesday_ _, March 17, 2020 ; 11: 51 AM_

 **Last Seen:**  
_Saturday_ , _March 14, 2020 ; 9: 42 PM_

**Reporter's Statement:**  
_"He hasn't been coming to work and no one is in house. He doesn't answer our calls too. We think something might've happened."_

**Witnesses:**  
_None_

**Witness' Statement:**  
_None_

**Date & Time witnessed:**  
_None_

* * *

**[File Case #6]**

VICTIM INFO:  
**Name:** _Park Seunghun_  
**Age:** _26_  
**DOB:** _December 29,_ _1993_  
**Sex:** _Male_  
**Nationality:** _Korean_  
**Occupation** **:** _Waiter (Soul Cafe)_  
**Height:** _159 cm_  
**Weight:** _57 kg_

**Current status:**  
_Deceased_

**Date & Time found: ** _  
Monday, March 23, 2020 ; 9: 29 PM_

 **Location found:  
** _Min Subdivision_

**Cause of death:**  
_2 broken ribs, 3 stab wounds (right shoulder, chest, left leg)_

**Leads:**  
_Black Mask_

**Reported missing by:**  
_Park Hyojung_ _,_ _Wife_

**Reported missing on:**  
_Sunday, March 22, 2020 ; 7: 18 AM_

**Last Seen:**  
_Saturday_ , _March 21, 2020 ; 8: 36 AM_

**Reporter's Statement:**  
_"He never came home from work since Satuday and I couldn't get a hold of him. Something must've happened to my husband, please help me."_

**Witnesses:**  
_Cho Taeho, resident in the neighborhood_

**Witness' Statement:**  
_"I heard someone scream and when I looked, there was this man being stabbed by a man in a black mask and grey jacket. I immediately called the cops then."_

**Date & Time witnessed:  
** _Monday, March 23, 2020 ; 9: 19 PM_

* * *

**[File Case #7]**

VICTIM INFO:  
**Name:** _K_ _im Yerin_  
**Age:** _28_  
**DOB:** _November 2, 1991_  
**Sex:** Female  
**Nationality:** _Korean_  
**Occupation** **:** _T_ _ea_ _cher (Seoul Middle School)_  
**Height:** _157 cm_  
**Weight:** _54 kg_

**Current status:**  
_Deceased_

**Date & Time found: ** _  
Saturday, March 28, 2020 ; 10: 28 AM_

 **Location found:  
** _Car trunk, unused_

 **Cause of death:**  
_S_ _evere bruises,_ _5 stab wounds (2 in the chest, stomach, 1 for each leg)_

**Leads:**  
_Black Mask_

**Reported missing by:**  
_Kim Jongmi_ _,_ _Husband_

 **Reported missing on:**  
_Thursday_ _, March 25, 2020 ; 8: 01 AM_

**Last Seen:**  
_Tuesday, March 24, 2020 ; 2: 42 PM_

**Reporter's Statement:**  
_"She never goes home late without telling me. At first, I thought she was at a friend's, but after calling them all and them saying they haven't seen her, I got really worried."_

**Witnesses:**  
_None_

**Witness' Statement:**  
_None_

**Date & Time witnessed:**  
_None_


	4. [4]

Minho's brows furrowed as he read the 7 file cases carefully. The dates of these crimes are way too close to each other. It's like after this one scene unfolds, the other goes next immediately.

Minho leaned back in his chair, thinking deeply. The gaps between these dates are between 3-6 days each. How fast can this guy take down each of these victims and clean up the tracks?

Minho studied the statements of the 3 witnesses again. All of them mentioned a man in a black mask. But there were also other particular clothings mentioned.

A red and grey jacket. The other cases didn't involve any witnesses so Minho had nothing much to compare.

But these 3 witnesses stated only one man during the scene. Which means Black Mask does his work alone.

Minho felt even more confused.

It's impossible to kill people and erase any evidence this fast without any help. Minho stared at the file cases as he was deep in thought.

He was so deep in thought that he missed the knock coming from his door. Chan, who was standing from the doorway, rolled his eyes before walking over and tapped Minho's arm.

Minho jumped, obviously not expecting a visitor at this hour.

"What are you doing here hyung?" Minho asked, breathing heavily

Chan's brows furrowed, "It's lunch time. We've been waiting for 10 minutes but you weren't coming."

Minho glanced at the clock with wide eyes. So it is lunch time.

"Sorry, I got caught up with work."

Minho stood up then he and Chan walked out of his office, Minho not forgetting to lock his office.

"Oh yeah, how's the case going? Any progress?"

"Not much. I just started a few hours ago."

The two entered the cafeteria and saw Felix waving at them.

"Hey, a little is still a progress. You can do it." Chan said as he and Minho sat down

"I already got your lunch hyung so you don't have to line up." Felix said with a bright smile, pushing the tray of food towards Minho

Minho smiled, taking the tray from Felix, "Thanks Lix."

"How's your case doing hyung?"

"Not much really. I just started studying the paperworks but at least I did something."

The three of them ate in silence, Minho thinking about the case again.

Why were the dates of the crimes too close to each other?

Does the Black Mask wear a specific color on purpose or was it unintentional?

What's Black Mask's purpose for killing these people?

Was it all for fun? Or were they someone to him?

All these questions swirled around Minho's head that he didn't realize he hasn't been eating properly anymore.

"Minho, you've been chewing the same spoonful for 2 minutes now. I'm pretty sure fried rice isn't chewing gum."

Minho swallowed, feelings his cheeks turn red. Man this case is making him do stupid things now.

"Focus on eating first hyung, you should at least enjoy your meal before stressing out again."

Minho sighed and nodded, taking another bite, this time focusing on his food.

Minho sat in his office staring at his notepad as he gathered his thoughts. His notepad was now filled with new notes that he made while he was trying to formulate theories.

He planned on speaking to Seungmin after he's sure he hasn't missed anything for now.

Seungmin is one of the officers handling the computer system who also happens to be a friend of his. Not anyone can just scan through the files or cameras so some officers from were assigned to take care of it.

Minho listed down a few more notes before putting his notepad in his pocket along with his pencil before walking out and locking his office.

Minho walked to the other side of the station and looked for Seungmin. After a few minutes of searching, he heard loud voices coming from the lobby. Was that Seungmin?

He walked to the lobby in a fast pace and was met with a pretty shocking (but not really) sight.

He saw Seungmin and other officers trying to hold down a... thrashing man..

"Sir I need you to calm down." Seungmin said sternly once he was able to pin down the man to the floor, holding the man's hands behind his back

"No! You aren't doing anything, LET ME LOOK FOR MY DAUGHTER!" The man yelled, his movements becoming more violent with each passing second

"Sir you are endangering yourself, and the people here. Please calm down then we will settle this in an orderly manner."

The man only yelled even more, trying to break free from Seungmin's grip, the other officers on duty assisting Seungmin. Minho walked closer to the two and kneeled down to match the screaming man's level.

"What seems to be the problem here?" Minho asked, his gaze switching from Seungmin and the man

"These dumb officers aren't doing anything to help look for my daughter! She's been gone for a week now and they're just sitting their butt off!"

Minho glanced at Seungmin who had a blank expression on his face. They were all trained to never show any emotion to the civilians. Not anger, frustration, sadness, nothing.

Minho turned to the man again, "Sir I can assure you that our officers are doing everything they can to look for your daughter. Your case is not the only case we have, there are other things that needs to be fixed too. Other people who need saving. You throwing a fit like this will only slow down the process. Do you want your daughter saved or not?"

Minho looked at the man straight in the eyes, his voice completely serious. The man went quiet. He looked up at Minho and nodded lightly.

Minho patted Seungmin's shoulder and stood up. Seungmin slowly released the man, still cautious in case he started acting violently again.

The man slowly stood up with his head hung low, "I'm sorry. I'm just really worried for my daughter. I'll wait."

Seungmin placed a hand on Minho's shoulder, offering him a smile which Minho returned.

Minho felt his heart ache as he watched the man sit back down but Minho quickly regained his composure. This was the hardest part about his job. He hated seeing these people so scared for their loved one's life. Always worrying for their well-being.

Minho can see himself in their shoes which hurts him even more. Sometimes he wishes he'll able to help them in one snap of his fingers.


	5. [5]

"So what brought you to this side of the department? Your office is all the way at the other side."

Seungmin and Minho were now walking towards Seungmin's cubicle.

"I need your help to access the computer system."

Seungmin glanced at Minho, "Is this about the Black Mask?"

Minho raised an eyebrow at Seungmin, "How'd you know I'm handling the case?"

Seungmin laughed, "You're the talk of the station hyung, everyone thinks you can solve this in a month."

Minho groaned, "Why does everyone look up to me so much, the pressure isn't doing any good!"

Minho honestly loves the attention and likes it when people think he's capable of something. But that's outside the force. He's basically a tiny little sheep inside his workplace.

Confident people can be vulnerable too you know?

Seungmin wrapped an arm around Minho, "Come on I know you can do it. You're smart... cocky, but smart."

Minho smacked Seungmin's chest, making the other groan in pain.

"Am I allowed to copy the recordings?"

Seungmin looked up at Minho as he sat in front of the monitor, "You want to copy the recordings? You've never done that before."

Minho shrugged, "There's a first for everything. Plus, I'm not staying here for the rest of the night watching a dozen different camera angles."

Seungmin laughed, "Alright fine."

Minho pulled out his notepad and checked every location the camera needs to be in and all the cameras pointing to a specific spot along with the date and time.

"How much longer?" Seungmin groaned, obviously bored out of his mind

Minho looked up at the younger, "This is gonna take a few more minutes."

Seungmin groaned louder, "Why do we even have to stay until you guys finish? It's not like you guys are toddlers!"

Minho rolled his eyes, "With all due respect Officer Kim, shut up or I won't treat you to a meal."

With that one sentence, Minho was able to stop Seungmin from complaining any louder. After 30 more minutes, Minho finally finished copying everything.

"Finally!!" Seungmin cheered

Minho laughed, "I should be saying that, not you."

"Do you know how suffocating it is in here? Ugh."

Minho laughed again, patting Seungmin's shoulder, "Thanks Officer Kim, I'll treat you to a meal soon."

Seungmin smiled, "You bully me so much that it makes me cringe to see you treat me with respect."

Minho rolled his eyes before the two bid the other goodbye. Minho walked back to his office and connected his hard drive to his laptop, ready to watch the security cameras.

"I should probably pee first."

Minho leaned against his desk as he fast-forwarded through most of the recording. Right now, his focus was on the front of the Kim Industries building, waiting for the CEO to step out.

Minho came to an abrupt stop when he finally saw the victim walk out of his office like a worm with legs.

He adjusted his position, sitting straight and watched the recording intently, his notepad right beside him for any notes.

The man sluggishly walked down the pavement. No one was around the area, Minho could tell. The other camera angles told him so.

A man suddenly walked up to the CEO, barely being seen due to his dark choice of colors in clothing.

"It's him.. The Black Mask.."

The two stood there for a while and it looked like they were conversing with each other. Suddenly the man in the black mask jabbed the back of the CEO's neck, knocking him out cold.

Black Mask carried the CEO, getting into a car and tying him up after setting him in the backseat. Minho switched camera angles, following the direction of Black Mask's car. Minho wrote down the plate number of the car he was using.

After a few minutes, Minho saw him pull up by a forest.

"Classic murder location.."

Black Mask threw the CEO to the ground, who was still unconscious, and just stood there, waiting for him to wake up (it was a full 10 minutes). When the man woke up, he was obviously startled.

Black Mask leaned down and it seemed like the two talked for a while. Minho sighed, waiting for them to finish. It was also pretty obvious that the CEO was begging for his life. But Black Mask was having none of it.

Suddenly, Black Mask stood up and shot the CEO.

Minho jumped, obviously not expecting him to kill him that time. Minho's mouth fell open in shock as Black Mask shot the CEO, not only once, but 13 times.

Yes, Minho counted it.

Plus, it was written on the report so..

Minho's brows furrowed. Why 13 times? Why that specific number? Is there a reason?

Minho stared at his screen as Black Mask stood there, staring at the now dead victim. After a few seconds, Black Mask started gathering up leaves and covered the body as best as he can. Once the body was no longer noticeable, he got into the car and left.

Minho noticed that he was wearing a black shirt, black jeans, black jacket, black gloves, black beanie, and of course, his black mask. That must be why not a single track is left, the guy is completely covered.

Minho sighed, writing down a few notes before switching to the next recording that'll tell him what happened to File case #2.

After fast-forwarding through the recording again, Minho stopped when he saw the student walking alone in the park.

After seeing her walk past the park the previous morning, Minho didn't see her walk back during their home time. Which can either mean that she didn't go home that night or she used a different route.

Although seeing her in the park at this hour makes Minho think that it was more of the former rather than the latter.

Minho watched and saw the girl just walking early in the morning when suddenly, a man started dragging her. Minho paused the recording and examined Black Mask's clothes.

He was still wearing that black mask but his clothes now aren't as dark as before. He was wearing a green shirt and some jeans.

His choice of clothes got Minho thinking.

Was he only careful with his first victim?

Did he get cocky and decided to wing it just because he wasn't caught the first time?

Minho pressed play and continued watching the recording again.

Black Mask started dragging the girl to a more isolated part in the park. Minho knows this is the less-visited part of the park since he often goes there when he has time. There weren't any other people there at that time anyway so there was no use dragging her there.

Black Mask threw the girl to the ground and stabbed her twice before running off. The moment Black Mask ran away, a girl suddenly ran to the student who was basically begging for help.

"Must be the witness.."

After the first two recordings, Minho's mind was already filled with questions. Watching the rest will probably make his head explode already.


	6. [6]

Minho was right. His head did feel like it was about to explode.

Minho walked around his office, his notepad in hand as he tried addressing every question formulated inside his head.

He just finished watching all the recordings half an hour ago and man his head felt heavy. Too many questions, not a single answer.

The more he watched the recordings, the more he found himself becoming more confused and intrigued with Black Mask.

Curious?

Okay we'll share what happened to the other victims.

Well you already know that the 1st one was brought to a forest before he was shot 13 times. After that, Black Mask covered him in a pile of leaves.

The 2nd victim was dragged to an isolated area in the park. She was stabbed twice before Black Mask ran off.

Now for the 3rd victim. She had a pretty gruesome death. She was knocked out as soon as she left her house and was brought to an empty parking lot where Black Mask burned her alive before shooting her halfway. Black Mask literally stood there and watched until the fire died down. Kinda sick though. After that, she was stuffed in a sack before being thrown in a big garbage can near a hospital.

The 4th victim was seen walking out of the convenience store when Black Mask approached him. The two talked for a while before they were seen walking to an alleyway. Black Mask didn't waste any time and shot him 3 times before running.

The 5th victim could be seen walking near an alleyway when he suddenly fell. Minho knew what those were. Tranquilizer darts. How? He saw it of course. The victim was brought to an empty warehouse where he was tortured by getting severe cuts until Black Mask shot him 4 times. Once he was done, he left the body next to a pile of boxes outside the warehouse.

The 6th victim was walking around a subdivision when Black Mask suddenly attacked him. The victim could be seen putting up a fight as he tried to defend himself, but Black Mask was stronger and beated him up real good. And if that wasn't enough, Black Mask stabbed him before leaving him there to die alone.

The 7th victim, his most recent victim, just walked out of the middle school when she was also shot with a tranquilizer dart. She was soon brought to an abandoned building where Black Mask beated her up and then stabbed 5 times. Once she was completely unconscious, Black Mask put her inside an abandoned car where the cops soon found her.

Minho stood still in the middle of his office, trying to get his head to think straight.

Why is it that he has a pattern for his schemes for every case?

For one case, he'll leave the victim somewhere after he's done with them. For the next, he'll just run off, leaving them wherever they are. The pattern will continue from that, going back to the first one.

Minho also noticed how for every case, there's also a pattern between either bringing them somewhere before finishing them off or just killing them on the spot.

Minho saw that for some of the cases, Black Mask utilized a vehicle. During the first recording, he thought he'll be able to track down the owner of the vehicle.

But when he watched the 3rd recording, the car changed. For the next few vehicles used, the car kept changing.

"Rented cars... smartass.."

Minho planned to track down these cars' plate numbers earlier to see which company they belong to. After that, he's going to interview the workers regarding the info of their customers.

Minho knew that Black Mask would probably use a fake identity, but hey, it's worth a shot.

Minho ran his fingers through his hair as he wondered if those patterns that he saw had a meaning.

Are they really patterns or is he just overthinking things?

He walked back to his desk and played the last recording again.

Minho stared at Black Mask as he did his business with his most recent victim. It was extremely uncomfortable for him to watch, but he needed to.

Just as Black Mask was about to stab his victim, something inside Minho's head snapped.

Minho hurriedly paused the recording where Black Mask's arm was raised high in the air, waiting to lunge forward.

Minho squinted at the screen as his eyes can barely make out Black Mask in the recording. Minho quickly read through his notes as he realized he even took note of what Black Mask was wearing for every case.

Another pattern.

For one, he was wearing all black. The next, he's wearing random colors. Then it continues from there.

Minho leaned against his desk, his brows met in frustration and confusion.

Why the hell does he act, dress, and handle things differently for every case like it was some sort of pattern?

Minho gasped.  
  
  


Unless...  
  
  


Minho's thoughts were cut short when he heard his phone's ringtone. Minho pulled out his phone and saw that Jisung was calling him.

Minho smiled before answering the call, "Hey Sung, what's up?"

"I just wanted to make sure you're doing well. You stayed there overnight last night and I'm not even sure you're still eating."

Minho laughed, "I'm okay baby, I'm still eating properly. Chan and Felix dragged me to the cafeteria a few hours ago. Did you eat yet?"

He heard Jisung laugh, "I can always count on those two. And yeah I already ate. I'll see you soon baby okay?"

Minho smiled, "Of course. I love you."

"I love you too."

Minho hung up on the phone, feeling his heart beat fast. Even after dating for years, Jisung could still manage to make his heart beat fast.

Minho glanced at his notepad again. He needs to speak to Seungmin. Fast.

"Do you know what time he'll get back?"

"Sorry Detective Lee, I don't. If you want, I can inform him once he gets back."

Minho smiled, "No it's okay, don't worry about it."

Minho sighed, leaning against the reception desk.

_'Of all days Seungmin, you had to be gone today??'_

He was looking for Seungmin but he just found out that the said officer went out to run some errands.

Minho pulled out his phone and was about to text Seungmin when screaming was suddenly heard from outside the station.

Minho looked up, completely unfazed.

These kinds of things are already normal for them. Screaming, fighting, thrashing, anything violent basically. They see it everyday, What's new?

Minho squinted his eyes and saw Changbin and Hyunjin, also experienced officers, dragging a screaming man with Seungmin trailing behind them.

Now he was interested.

"Let me go!"

Minho walked to the front of the station and held the door open so the 2 officers could come in with ease.

"What's going on?" Minho asked as the 2 dragged the thrashing man inside

"We found him."

Minho turned to Seungmin who walked up beside him.

Minho's brows furrowed, "Who??"

" **Black Mask**."


	7. [7]

Minho's eyes widened. His gaze snapped towards the man being held down by Changbin and Hyunjin.

This is Black Mask???

The man was obviously glaring at him, drilling metaphorical holes to his head. Minho noticed the black mask on his face along with casual clothes.

_'Colored clothes...'_

"Take him inside." Seungmin ordered

Minho looked down, in deep thought. During his last crime, he was wearing all black. Now he was wearing colored clothes.

_'So it is a pattern...'_

"Detective Lee, are you going to interrogate him now or later?"

Minho turned to Seungmin with a sharp gaze, "Now."

"Now let's see who's behind this mask."

Minho stood in front of the guy as the guy sat behind the metal desk. Minho leaned forward, reaching for the man's mask. But he dodged Minho's hand, leaning to the side so Minho won't be able to take his mask off.

Minho smirked, "You underestimate me."

Minho held him in place before yanking off the mask from his face. The man tried to argue again at first but since he was handcuffed, he really couldn't do much.

Minho stared at the guy in front of him, his face completely blank. He examined him from head to toe but...

_'Something doesn't feel right..'_

Minho shook his head to get his brain back on track. Minho placed his notepad on the desk before sitting down, intertwining his fingers together and letting it rest on the desk.

"Name?"

The guy didn't say anything and only glared at Minho. Minho sighed then asked again.

"I asked for your name."

The guy scoffed, "And I never asked you to state the obvious."

Minho smirked, "Don't act cocky, you don't have the upperhand. I do. I'll ask you again... name?"

The guy glared at Minho again before speaking, "Park Jinyoung."

Minho wrote it down on his notepad before turning to him again, "I need you to answer my questions truthfully without leaving any details behind. Can you do that?"

Jinyoung raised a brow, "Do you really think I'll open myself up to you and get myself in even more trouble? You're stupid if you think so."

Minho put down his pencil, "I need you to tell me everything Park, or you might get filed with a false case. And I don't think you want that."

Jinyoung became silent, avoiding Minho's gaze. Minho took this as a sign to continue.

"Are you responsible for the death of 7 people?"

Jinyoung looked up, his face showing no expression as he shook his head.

Minho's brows furrowed, "Your victims.. do you know who they are?"

Jinyoung smirked, "I don't kill just anyone detective. I know who my victims are."

"How many people did you kill?"

Jinyoung thought for a while, " **4**."

Minho's gaze hardened, "I need you to be honest with me-"

"And I am." Jinyung said, cutting him off

Minho took a deep breath. Why is this dude even lying when he's already caught?

"Were you responsible for CEO Kim Minseok's death?"

Jinyoung shook his head, "Are you telling the truth?"

Jinyoung nodded, "Then where were you on the 5th of April?"

"Home."

"Was anyone with you at that time?"

Jinyoung shook his head again.

Minho stared at him for a few seconds, "Were you responsible for Ha Minhee's death?"

Jinyoung smirked, "Yeah."

Minho's brows furrowed, "Did you drag her around the park before stabbing her twice?"

"Hell yeah I did."

Minho was dead confused at this point. Jinyoung's answers doesn't match all of his clues. What's going on?

"How did you even find this guy?"

Minho, Seungmin, Changbin, and Hyunjin were now in Minho's office, discussing the happenings from earlier.

"Changbin hyung and I were waiting for Seungmin to finish withdrawing money from the bank when we saw someone get dragged in an alleyway. We decided to follow them and there he was, about to stab a student." Hyunjin explained, taking a sip from his water bottle

"Hyunjin and I immediately tackled him. Seungmin came, then he realized it was Black Mask that we captured."

Minho silently listened to his friends as they gave him updates about what happened.

"How do you know it really is him?"

During the interrogation earlier, Minho isn't sure whether Jinyoung was honest with him or not. He admitted killing some of the victims but for the others, he didn't.

He doesn't know who to believe now. Jinyoung, or the clues sitting in front of him.

Seungmin turned to Minho, "We almost caught him before but he runs really fast. I know it's him. Judging by the aura and his figure, I can tell it's him."

Minho turned to Seungmin suddenly, his eyes wide as he came to a realization.  
  
  
  


Figure...  
  
  
  


The body figure!! How did Minho not notice that??

Minho ran to his desk and opened his laptop, leaving the 3 officers shocked and confused as hell.

"Dude you scared me!"

"Hyung the hell is wrong with you?"

"Yeah, why would you suddenly run like that??"

Minho didn't say anything and just focused on typing his passcode as he already typed it incorrectly 3 times due to his anxious hands.

Minho honestly felt like smacking himself. Why didn't he think of that before?

If the schemes and actions change for every case, then it must mean one thing.  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Black Mask isn't just one person**...  
  
  
  
  
  
  


This isn't a pattern at all. Black Mask never did it intentionally. It only happened because they were two people.

**Two people that they thought were one.**

Well metaphorically they are.

Minho skimmed through all of the recordings, taking note of the body proportions for each recording by the date and time of the crime.

The 3 officers stood up and walked closer to Minho, wondering what's got him so worked up.

They didn't say anything. They just stood there and waited for Minho to finish so he can tell them what's going on.

Minho looked up and saw them staring at him with curious and worried eyes.

"So...?"

"Black Mask isn't just one person..."

"What??"

"Wait what did you say?"

"Hyung what are you talking about?"

"Jinyoung... he doesn't work alone.. **he has a partner**.."


	8. [8]

"Hyung are you even sure about this??"

"Positive. I always wondered about how his choice of clothes always change, and now I just noticed his body proportions. There's two of them."

Changbin and Hyunjin exchanged a look as they walked behind Minho who is now walking in a fast pace, not knowing exactly where they're headed.

Seungmin jogged faster, trying to keep up with Minho's pace, "What if you're wrong then? What if it's Jinyoung just wanting to mess with us?"

Minho looked at Seungmin, "I guess we'll find out in a few."

Seungmin stared at Minho for a few seconds before grabbing his arm, stopping him from walking any further.

Changbin and Hyunjin, who were still jogging, slammed into Minho and Seungmin's backs.

A series of groans and complaints were heard from the two officers.

"At least warn us next time!" Hyunjin glared

"I think I swallowed my gum." Changbin choked out, holding his throat

"You two, get Jinyoung to the interrogation room." Seungmin ordered

The two nodded before running off to the cells.

Seungmin turned to Minho, "You better go there now."

Minho smiled before running off to the interrogation area.

"Missed me?"

Jinyoung smirked as soon as he entered the room. Minho rolled his eyes at the other's statements.

"Hardly. I have new questions to ask you."

Jinyoung groaned, "Don't you ever run out of questions?"

Minho smirked, "I'm a detective. I basically get paid to ask questions."

Jinyoung rolled his eyes, "What do you want?"

Minho's face suddenly became serious, his stare becoming ice cold, "Who's your partner?"

Jinyoung's brows furrowed, "What?"

Minho scoffed, "Don't act like you don't know."

"I don't."

"Stop pretending, I already know your little act. Now tell me! Who the hell is your partner?!"

Jinyoung stood up, "I TOLD YOU, I DON'T HAVE A PARTNER!"

"THEN WHY THE HELL DOES YOUR TACTICS KEEP CHANGING!"

Jinyoung froze, "What??"

Minho sighed, regaining his posture, "Just tell me who you're working with, it will make things easier for the both of us."

Jinyoung sighed angrily, "What do I have to do to prove that I work alone?? Working with someone increases the chances of them ratting me out. So why would I!"

"I don't get it!"

Minho sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair. What is going on? He thought he solved it. But he really didn't.

They even made Jinyoung go through a bunch of lie detector tests but they were all negative. He wasn't lying.

"If he isn't working with anybody, then how else are you supposed to explain this?"

"Hyung calm down, I think you need a break." Changbin said in a worried tone

Minho sighed, leaning against the wall. He felt so betrayed. He's been studying this case for days, yet all his progress keeps going back to sqaure one because his theories are wrong.

"Hyung seriously, go home. You've been here for days, don't wait for me to call Jisung hyung." Seungmin threatened

Minho glanced at them. The 3 officers were looking at him with worried eyes. Minho sighed. They're right. He hasn't gone home yet because of this stupid case.

"Alright.. I'll go home.."

"Baby, how are you feeling?"

Minho closed his eyes and leaned his face towards Jisung's hands, sighing contently. Man he missed this.

"I'm okay baby. Just a little tired."

"Have you eaten yet? I'll make something for you, give me a m-"

Minho held Jisung's wrist, "I'm not in the mood to eat Sung. Honestly, all I want right now is to cuddle with you. I missed you."

Jisung's face softened, "I miss you a lot too. But I can't have you getting sick. When was the last time you ate?"

Minho became silent. His last meal was this morning. Jisung is so not gonna let him skip his meal.

"A few hours ago.." Minho smiled sheepishly

Jisung glared, "And how long is a few hours ago..?"

"...This morning.."

And all hell broke loose.

"Ow, wait, Jisung, it hurts-"

"Stop whining- you should've thought of that before skipping your meals!"

Minho snuggled closer to Jisung's chest, inhaling the younger boy's scent. He missed his boyfriend a lot and with everything going on in the station, all he needed was his favorite person.

Jisung looked down at Minho as he ran his fingers through his hair, "How's everything at the station?"

"Hectic. Cases coming in here and there."

Jisung hummed, "And what about Black Mask?"

Minho's eyes opened, his face showing nothing but disappointment.

"We found him.."

Jisung's gaze snapped towards the top of Minho's head, "Really??"

"Yeah... but we still haven't figured out everything yet.."

Jisung's brows furrowed, "What do you mean?"

Minho sighed, his arms tightening around Jisung, "We did catch him but... it's also like we didn't.."

Jisung sighed. Jisung pulled away a little from Minho and faced him, their faces only inches away from each other.

Jisung's heart broke when he looked into Minho's eyes. They were filled with so much sadness. At this point, Jisung already knew what was going through Minho's head.

Jisung cupped Minho's face, Minho instinctively leaning in to his touch.

"Baby, this is just the beginning. It's only been a few days since you got the case yet you already made so much progress. You're not a failure baby, okay? You're doing so well and I am really proud of you. I love you."

Minho sobbed as Jisung spoke his words. This was when Minho was most vulnerable. At night, with too much stress and work knocking at his doorstep.

This was also when Jisung knew Minho needed him most. Which is exactly what he's doing.

"I-I just want to c-catch the guy to stop any m-more murders. But I-I can't and I feel so u-useless and I-"

"Shh baby, don't say that please. You aren't useless. You're doing so much for the people. I appreciate you for that. Don't think of this as a setback, think of this as an opportunity. An opportunity for you to work even harder, and do even better."

Minho sniffled as tears streamed down his face. Jisung leaned his forehead against Minho's, hoping he can feel his love and support.

Minho closed his eyes, holding Jisung's hand that were on his cheeks. Jisung's right. He can't give up now.

"I-I'm sorry for being like this.." Minho mumbled

Jisung shook his head, "Don't ever be sorry for feeling like this. We all have those days. And it's okay."

Minho looked into Jisung's eyes and Minho felt himself fall for him even more. Is that even possible? I guess so.

"I love you Jisung."

"I love you too Minho."


	9. [9]

"I'll probably stay home today. Boss wants me to finish the last 3 chapters of the book I'm working on."

Minho hummed, "Baby don't overwork yourself okay? Don't skip meals."

Jisung chuckled, "I could tell you the same thing you big baby."

Minho laughed, "How's your butt by the way?"

Jisung glared, "As sore as ever, thank you!"

"I bet you're only staying home because you can't walk properly."

"You saw me waddle into the kitchen, YOU DON'T NEED TO BET ON ANYTHING!"

Minho laughed so hard at Jisung's statement, he started choking on his food.

Woah, slow down, it's not what you think.

Minho and Jisung thought it would be fun to play wrestling while watching a movie.

Things got _a little_ out of hand and Minho ended up pushing Jisung off the couch resulting in a bruised butt.

"Yeah that's what you get for pushing me off." Jisung glared

"Sorry, I just missed you a lot."

"I feel like you should start missing me less."  
  
  
  
  
  


"When I told you to relax last night, this isn't really what I meant."

Minho looked up at Seungmin with a confused look, "What do you mean? I was relax last night."

"Yeah we know, your hickey tells us everything."

Minho's hand immediately went to his neck. Running to his full-length mirror, he checked his neck, and sure enough, there was a purple spot on his neck.

"It's a bruise, not a hickey."

"Yeah sure, keep telling yourself that." Chan smirked

Seungmin, Felix, and Chan were all in Minho's office. They just finished lunch and still had time before their break was up.

Minho glared at Chan, "Shut up. Jisung bit me as payback when I accidentally pushed him off the couch while wrestling."

"I'm not even gonna ask."

Minho walked over to his cabinet and grabbed his hoodie. He threw it over his head, pulling the hood up so the bruise is completely covered.

"Hey hyung, how's Black Mask going?"

Minho went silent. How is Black Mask going?

"Jinyoung said he didn't have a partner. What are you planning to do now?"

Minho went over to his desk and opened his laptop, "I'll have to watch the recordings again. Check to see if I missed anything else."

The 3 exchanged worried looks. They can tell Minho is really stressed. He came to work with mispaired shoes this morning and that's never happened before.

"We'll leave you to it then hyung. Break's almost over anyway." Felix stood up

They all bid each other goodbye, leaving Minho to be engulfed in the silence of his office.

Minho stared at the ceiling, trying to put his thoughts together. He was fiddling with the hem of his hoodie when Minho suddenly remembered something.

He immediately pulled out his phone and typed up his message.

 **Me:**  
You little brat, why didn't you tell me I had a bruise on my neck¿?

 **Sungie:**  
Bruise? What bruise? 🤔

 **Me:**  
I am SO not giving you cuddles for the next 2 weeks.

 **Sungie:**  
I was kidding!! It was payback for my bruised butt- I can barely use the bathroom right!

 **Me:**  
.....  
Alright fine, I'll let this pass... 

**Sungie:**  
I love youuuu

 **Me:**  
Yeah, yeah, whatever

**Sungie:**   
**🥺🥺**

**Me:**  
I love you toooo

 **Sungie:**  
🥰🥰

Minho leaned back, mentally preparing himself to watch all 7 recordings all over again.

Minho sighed deeply, _'Here we go.'_

Minho rubbed his eyes as he stood in front of the coffee machine. He kept on trying to press the buttons but he wondered why it wasn't working.

"Uh hyung... you okay?"

Minho turned and saw Changbin standing there with a worried look on his face.

Minho smiled tiredly, "Yeah just grabbing some coffee."

Changbin glanced at the machine in front of him, "Hyung that's the vending machine."

Minho's gaze turned to the machine and sure enough, it was the vending machine.

"Oh.." Minho said dejectedly

Changbin gently held Minho's shoulders and pushed him a little so he'll be in front of the coffee machine. He took Minho's cup and got his coffee ready for him.

Minho sighed, carding his fingers through his hair, "Hyung you're really stressed, why don't you get some rest?"

"I can't Changbin. Even if I wanted to, I can't. My brain won't stop bugging me just to get the stupid clues right."

Changbin looked at the older with a worried look on his face. He's never seen Minho this stressed. He usually never showed it to others.

But now here Minho was with his shirt buttoned wrong, mispaired shoes, and disheveled hair standing in front of the vending machine waiting for his cup to be filled with coffee.

Minho leaned against the table provided for the coffee machine, "I just don't get it. I've analyzed everything. The recordings, I've watched everything. The suspect, I've spoken to him. If he doesn't have a partner and doesn't change tactics, then what else could be-"

Minho froze. Changbin stared at Minho, wondering why he stopped mid-sentence.

"Hyung what's wrong?"

Changbin was startled when Minho suddenly ran.

"Hyung! Where are you going??"

Minho leaned back, "I think I cracked it!" Minho yelled, disappearing around the corner

Changbin shook his head and glanced at the coffee machine, "Idiot forgot his coffee."

Minho hastily grabbed his keys and tried opening his door. It took a few tries and a few wrong keys but he got it open.

He slammed the door close as he ran to his desk, frantically searching for his notepad.

He found it sitting on his drawer as he grabbed the file cases and opened them all. Minho skimmed through all the files and his notepad when he finally came up with a conclusion. A crazy yet 'seems accurate' conclusion.

Minho looked up when he heard a knock. The person didn't even bother waiting for his reply as the door opened right after.

"You forgot your coffee you dumbass."

Changbin entered his office and placed his coffee on his coffee table.

"What's with the running?"

Minho smiled widely, "Changbin I finally got it! I cracked it!"

Changbin tilted his head, "What do you mean?"

"Call Seungmin and Hyunjin over. **You guys caught the wrong guy**."  
  
  



	10. [10]

"Wait, what do you mean we caught the wrong guy??"

Seungmin, Hyunjin, and Changbin were all in Minho's office. Seungmin leaned against his desk with crossed arms, Hyunjin sat on the couch, while Changbin remained standing beside the couch.

They were all pretty shocked when they heard they apparently 'caught the wrong guy'.

Minho paced around the room, "I can't believe I didn't realize this before! It was right there!"

"Okay hyung, mind sharing? Because if not, then why call us over." Hyunjin deadpanned

Minho turned to them, "You guys caught the wrong guy! **Jinyoung isn't Black Mask**!"

The 3 looked at him, bewildered, "What?? Dude he already admitted killing 4 of those victims, how can he not be Black Mask??" Hyunjin asked, standing up

"Yeah he could be denying the fact that he killed the other 3." Changbin stated

"Why bother denying the rest when you already admitted half of it?" Minho said

Minho walked over to his desk and grabbed the 4 cases Jinyoung admitted being responsible for before placing them on his coffee table.

"And he did. He killed these four.." Minho trailed off

Minho placed the other 3 file cases on the coffee table, "But not these 3."

The 3 officers'eyes went wide at Minho's statement.

"Jinyoung has been a crimimal here for 3 months already. Black Mask has only been active since last month."

Changbin looked up at Minho, "What are you trying to say?"

" **The cases were mislinked**."

"Wait what?!"

"Hyung cases here have never been mislinked before." Hyunjin said, bewildered

"Until now." Minho pointed out

"No offense hyung, but how can you be so sure about this? Last time you were wrong about Jinyoung having a partner." Seungmin said, placing the file case he was previously holding back on the table

"Think about it. The tactics, the choices of clothing, the aftermath, the body proportions, they all keep changing. And there's only two explanations. Either he has a partner, or it's a completely different person."

The 3 was silent as they tried comprehensing the words that came out of Minho's mouth.

"And considering the fact that Jinyoung knows nothing about the 3 other cases means he didn't really kill them or he wasn't a part of it. Lying is also out of the picture. But he did kill these other 4 according to the evidences and his statements."

Minho picked up the 4 cases that were mislinked to Black Mask, "These 4 belong to the ' **Operation: Seoul Slayer** ' case. And their suspect is Park Jinyoung."

The 3 were silent. They couldn't believe it. The cases were mislinked the whole time. No wonder they had a hard time finding the suspect.

"The only thing I need to do now is to actually find Black Mask. I'll drop by the car rental place tomorrow and see what I can get."

"Car rental place? What for?" Changbin asked

"Black Mask uses cars to bring his victims somewhere before killing them. But his car changes every time. I'm planning to go to the car rental place to ask for information."

_'I can't believe I'm actually making more progress.'_

Minho smiled as he walked towards the nearest convenience store. He wanted to get something to drink before driving home.

This whole time, he was actually analyzing 2 different cases. That's why it was hard for him to find the suspect.

Minho was about to enter the store when he heard something from the alleyway nearby.

Alleys are prone to accidents so Minho took cautious steps towards it. He pressed his back against the wall and tried listening to whatever is going on in there. All he heard was movements being made.

Minho cautiously peeked to see what was going on. He saw a guy dressed in all black with a black mask on his face carry an unconscious man.

Minho's brows furrowed as he watched the man in the black mask carry the unconscious man to a car.

Wait.. could it be?

_'Don't tell me that's Black Mask..'_

When the culprit got in the car, Minho ran to his own car to try and catch up to the guy.

Minho frantically turned on his engine and turned to see the car pass by behind him.

He pulled out of the parking lot and followed the car, keeping a safe distance to make it seem like they were just going the same way.

Minho pulled out his phone and immediately dialed Seungmin.

"Hello?"

"I need backup hurry. Just follow my location. Be discrete at all costs."

Minho hanged up his phone, not waiting for a reply and focused on the car in front of him. He glanced at the plate number, but it didn't seem familiar.

_'He switched cars again.'_

Minho didn't know what he was doing. He wasn't even sure if this really was Black Mask.

Minho smacked his head, "Get your head straight, that's still a potential criminal."

Minho slowed down a little and saw the car turn right. Minho watched and saw the car stop in front of an unfinished building.

Minho kept driving forward and parked his car near an old building. He quietly got out of his car and got his gun ready.

He took cautious and quiet steps towards the building the man was currently in front of. Minho hid behind a tree and watched him from afar.

The black masked man took the struggling man out of his car and threw him to the ground.

Minho winced. _'That's gotta hurt.'_

Minho saw movements up ahead so he went to check. He saw someone waving at him as if asking what's up.

Minho smiled. _'Right on time.'_

Minho gave Seungmin a few gestures, indicating that the criminal was near the building.

Seungmin tilted his head, scratching his head. Minho rolled his eyes and just gestured for Seungmin to follow him along with the other officers.

Minho took quiet steps as he headed towards the crouched man. The hostage was struggling to get out of the ropes, but the man just stared at him with cold eyes.

Apparently the other didn't seem to hear anyone approaching him as he didn't even look back.

Minho pointed his gun at the man's head, "Put your hands up, and step away from the hostage."

The other visibly froze. Obviously he wasn't expecting any encounters with the cops anytime soon.

Seungmin, Changbin, Hyunjin, along with the other cops formed a line behind Minho, all ready to defend in case the culprit attacks.

The man shakily puts his hand up as he slowly stood up, Minho's gun following his head the whole time.

When the man was fully upright, he slowly turned around with his gaze glued to the ground.

"Take off the mask." Minho ordered with gritted teeth

Mimho felt his heart beat fast. He didn't know why but he felt scared. Of what? He doesn't know.

The man stayed unmoved.

Minho sighed angrily, "I said take off the mask."

The man still didn't show any signs of moving. Minho put his gun down and yanked the mask off the man's face.

He felt his world stop.

" **J-Jisung?** "


	11. [11]

Minho felt his whole world crumble down.

Why the hell is Jisung here?

What is his business with this struggling man?

But more importantly, is he Black Mask?

"Jisung hyung..." Seungmin said dejectedly

Jisung kept his gaze at Minho, "Minho please I can explain."

Jisung took a step forward but Minho took a step backward, his face showing signs of utter betrayal.

Jisung felt his heart ache.

"I'll take it from here."

Minho didn't realize the chief was there. Either way, he didn't care. All he could think about was how everything seemed like a lie to him now.

He didn't move from his place even as Chief Yang ordered Changbin and Hyunjin to cuff Jisung up.

The two officers hesitantly walked up to Jisung and gently handcuffed him. The whole time, Jisung was trying to explain himself. But he didn't try to fight back.

"Minho please listen to me! It's not the way it seems!"

Minho looked down as tears welled up in his eyes, but he held back his tears. Did his own boyfriend lie to him? Did his own boyfriend keep all this from him?

Even if he wasn't Black Mask, then what the hell was he planning to do with this tied up man?

"Hey... how are you holding up?"

Minho remained silent as Chan sat beside him in his office. They just got back to the station. Chan only found out because he was in the lobby when they came back.

Minho didn't even spare him a glance, immediately walking to his office with his eyes glued to the floor. So Seungmin was left to explaim everything to Chan.

Chan placed a hand on Minho's thigh, squeezing it encouragingly.

"Let it out now or you'll break down in the interrogation room."

With just that, Minho broke into sobs, Chan pulling the younger to his chest, hugging him tightly.

"I f-feel so betrayed hyung. Why him? Why my J-Jisung??!"

Chan didn't say anything and continued rubbing circles on Minho's back. Truthfully, Chan didn't have a good explanation either. He doesn't know how to make this situation positive.

Minho was broken. He didn't want to accept the fact that his boyfriend could be a potential criminal. Him being a detective makes things even harder for him.

He didn't want to see him get locked behind bars. He didn't want to see him suffer inside those cells. He didn't want to see the love of his life go through all that.

"You ready?"

Minho stared at the door for a few more seconds before taking a deep breath, "Not really."

Chief Yang patted his back, "You don't have to do this you know. I can ask another-"

"No. I want to hear his side in person."

The chief glanced at Minho with a worried look. Everyone who knew Minho knew who Jisung was. Minho is a proud boyfriend.

Jisung sometimes drop by the station to give Minho some food or to just see him. Anyone can see that they really did love each other.

Chief Yang sighed, "Okay."

Minho took another deep breath. _'Get a hold of yourself Lee Minho. You can do this._ _'_

"Han Jisung."

It took all of Minho's might to stop his voice from cracking. Thankfully it didn't.

Jisung slowly looked up at Minho with his eyes all red and teary. He sat with his hands on his lap, making him look extremely tiny.

If Minho didn't just see Jisung almost commit a crime, he would've ran to Jisung and snuggled him up. But no.

"I'll be asking you a series of questions and I need you to answer them thruthfully. Is that understood?"

Minho's tone and stare was cold. Outside, he looked like he has everything under control. But deep inside, he's dying. He wants to scream and let all his anger and tears out.

Minho saw Jisung staring at the glass behind him before looking back down, "Y-Yes sir.."

Minho stared at him for a few seconds, taking in the way Jisung was practically shaking in front of him.

Minho wanted to comfort him and tell him it'll all be okay.. but he couldn't.

"Are you responsible for killing these 3 victims?"

Minho placed 3 pictures in front of Jisung, waiting for him to say no.

But he never did.

Jisung hesitantly nodded.

Minho's breath hitched. Deep inside him, he wished this was all a misunderstanding and that Black Mask was in no way related to him.

"Han Jisung... a-are you Black Mask?"

Minho's voice shook as his eyes welled up with tears. This can't be.

Jisung bit his lip and spoke with a hushed tone, " **I am**."

With those two words, Minho lost it.

A sob left Minho's mouth, "I trusted you!"

Jisung sobbed as Minho slammed his hands against the table. Seungmin and Chan ran inside, grabbing a hold of Minho's arms to stop him from doing anything impulsive.

"I even opened up to you how difficult this is for me, and this whole time it was YOU! How can you hide this from me! TELL ME HAN JISUNG!"

Jisung couldn't say anything. He just cried and cried as he took in Minho's words.

Somehow, he expected this. Secrets are bound to come out anyway. Why wouldn't this one be?

"Minho, i-it's not what it seems-"

"Bullshit!" Minho yelled, trying to break free from his friends' grasp

Jisung could only cry harder.

"You already killed 3 people! You were about to kill another one and now you're saying IT'S NOT WHAT IT SEEMS!"

"Minho calm down please." Chan whispered in Minho's ear

Minho didn't listen and tried to get free. He wanted to punch Jisung. For betraying him like this. Just once. He still loved the younger despite the lies.

"Bring Jisung back to his cell."

Changbin and Hyunjin held Jisung's shoulders, escorting him out of the interrogation room.

"Please listen to me! It's not what it looks like!" Jisung said, trying to reason with them

It hurt Changbin and Hyunjin to hear their friend plead like this, but they had to. The 2 didn't say anything and brought Jisung out.

Minho broke down as soon as Jisung left. He felt his knees give up on him, so he did. He let himself fall to the floor but Chan was there to catch him.

He sobbed into Chan's chest, gripping his shirt tightly. Minho already knew that Jisung being Black Mask has a high chance. But that being confirmed hurt like hell.

It hurts a lot when your assumptions are confirmed.

Chan held Minho tightly, letting him cry into his chest. Seungmin rubbed Minho's back comfortingly.

They too felt hurt about the situation. They all wanted to turn back time.

But that's not how life works.


	12. [12]

"Hyung?"

Minho looked up and saw Felix standing by the doorway. He noticed Felix was holding a paper bag.

"Hey Lix."

Felix frowned. Minho's voice sounded hoarse and basically dead inside. This isn't the Minho he was used to.

Felix stepped in and closed the door. Minho remained quiet and just stared at the floor as Felix sat on the couch, not really in the mood to converse right now.

"Hyung, I.. I brought you some food. You haven't been eating properly." Felix said, placing the paper bag on the coffee table

It's been 2 days since Minho found out that Jisung is Black Mask. 2 days since Jisung has been locked up.

During these 2 days, Minho couldn't find it in him to go home or even eat anything. He just stayed in his office all day working on his previous cases that he took back from the lower ranking detectives. 

Minho smiled half-heartedly at the younger, "Thanks Lix.. but I'm really not in the mood to eat right now."

Felix sighed, "Hyung, I understand that you're having a hard time. But I can't let you neglect your health like this."

Minho looked down, avoiding Felix's eyes, "When was the left time you left your office? When was the last time you ate? When was the last time you even spoke to any of us properly? I'm honestly surprised you're still hygienic right now."

Minho didn't dare utter a word. He knew Felix was right. He had to take care of himself.

"Come on hyung. Please?"

Minho looked up at Felix for a few seconds. He saw the desperation in his eyes. The concern. The Fear.

Minho sighed and stood up, "Okay."

Jisung played with his fingers as he sat, leaning on the wall. All that's in his mind right now is Minho. He's been scolding himself for the past 2 days.

How he should've just told Minho everything. This wouldn't happen if he had just told Minho everything.Everything.

Jisung sighed, leaning his head forward. Jisung jumped when someone suddenly hit the steel bars repeatedly.

Jisung looked up, obviously startled and saw an officer standing on the other side, "You have a visitor."

Jisung felt his blood boil as soon as he realized who was speaking.

Jisung walked along the halls as the officer kept their grip on him. Jisung winced as the grip was too tight, he could feel his blood circulation getting cut off from his arm.

Jisung entered the room with a glass divider and saw a man sitting on the other side of the glass, and Jisung knew exactly who it was.

Jisung glared at the man but sat down in the chair nonetheless.

"Hello Jisung."

Jisung's brows furrowed as a smirk appeared in the man's face.

"Why are you here?"

"Just here to make sure you keep your little mouth shut."

Jisung rolled his eyes, "That dimwitted officer was here to make sure of that."

The man smiled, glancing behind Jisung and saw the officer standing behind the door.

"We know we can trust him."

Jisung huffed, "What the hell do you want?"

"One who misbehaves shall get punished Han Jisung."

"What are you talking about?.."

The man leaned forward, "Remember your last... escapade?"

Jisung stared at the man in front of him. What does he mean by his last-

Jisung's eyes widened, " **Kim Youngho**..."

The man chuckled, "That's right."

"What do you want?!"

Jisung could feel his blood boiling. That stupid Kim Youngho was the cause of all this.

The man leaned back on the chair, showing a smug look on his face "Boss isn't too happy with you knocking him out and kidnapping him like that. So a punishment is ordered. He wants you to know that it will be done tonight. Good thing you won't be there to stop it."

And that's when all hell broke loose.

"YAH! DON'T YOU DARE TRY ANYTHING ON HIM!"

Jisung kept banging on the glass to break it and at least hit the man once. But the officers came the moment he hit it the first time.

"Han Jisung!"

Jisung kept trying to break free from the officers and kept yelling at the man on the other side of the glass.

"Such a shame you don't want to see an old friend Jisung." Tha man dramatically sighed and left

"YOU DUMBASS! GET BACK HERE!"

Jisung was about to try and charge once but he felt his whole body getting electrocuted.

_'Stupid taser!'_

"Minho-ah.."

Minho looked up and saw Hyunjin standing on the doorway. He didn't say anything and turned back to the folder he was reading knowing very well that no matter what he says, Hyunjin is going to disturb him anyway.

"Wow, thanks for the greeting." Hyunjin scoffed, closing the door and taking a seat at one of the chairs in front of Minho's desk

"What do you want Hwang?"

Minho was met with silence for a few seconds before he heard Hyunjin sigh. This made the older look up.

"What's wrong?"

Hyunjin looked at Minho with sadness in his eyes, "Jisung.. threw a fit earlier.."

Minho didn't say anything and turned back to the folder he was "reading". Okay, he wasn't actually reading. He was just staring at the page.

"Hyung.. what if.. there's more to the story and it's not what we think?"

Minho looked up at the younger, "Not what we think??" Minho scoffed

"He killed 3 people and was about to kill another one. How is he supposed to have other intentions?? Tell me Hwang!"  
  
Hyunjin kept silent. If glares could kill, Minho would be arrested by now.

"Hyung I just think-"

"It doesn't matter anymore Hyunjin. Leave it."

Minho's stern voice led Hyunjin to keep his mouth shut. Hyunjin stared at the older with sadness in his eyes before leaving the older's office.

With that, Minho was left with his own thoughts. Could Hyunjin be right?

Minho slapped his face lightly. He shouldn't be thinking about this, he has other cases to study.

Jisung groaned as he opened his eyes. His body felt tingly and his mind was all fuzzy. It took him a few seconds before he was able to remember the last thing that happened before he was knocked out.

Jisung abruptly sat up, "Shit, Minho."

Jisung took in his surroundings and realized he was back in his jail cell. He examined the cell to see if there was anything he could use to bust out.

That's right. This is an escape mission now.

Jisung stood up, his legs feeling wobbly. He mentally groaned as there was literally nothing that could help him. No windows, walls made of cement, and a single bed. 

The only hope he has left is...

Jisung turned as he heard footsteps walking down the hallway. He walked over and tried to see who it was.

**Hyunjin.**

Jisung smiled, _'Perfect.'_

"Hyung? What are you doing up?"

Jisung reached out for Hyunjin's hand, "Hyunjin, you need to listen to me. I need your help."

Hyunjin stepped closer to Jisung, holding his hand tightly, "Jisung, as much as I want to, I can't. It's against the rules."

"Hyunjin please, Minho's in trouble. He needs help." Jisung pleaded

Hyunjin smiled sadly at the younger, "Jisung, Minho's fine. He's in his office. This place is filled with cops, he'll be fine."

"Hyunjin-"

"Officer Hwang, Chief Yang is asking for you."

Hyunjin turned to his fellow officer, nodding at him, "I'll be right there."

Hyunjin turned to Jisung, squeezing his hands tightly, "I have to go Sung-ah. Minho hyung will be fine."

Hyunjin turned to leave as Jisung just stared at him in disbelief. _'I can't believe he didn't even listen to me!'_

Jisung sighed, leaning against the wall.

"I have to do everything myself huh?" He said as he raised the shining object in his hand


	13. [13]

Minho bobbed his head along with the music playing from his stereo. He wasn't originally planning on coming home tonight but he figured he should listen to Felix's nagging before he drags him home.

Minho's brows furrowed as he saw someone waving to him from the side of the road. The man looked a bit haggard and Minho thought that maybe he needed help.

He pulled over and got out of his car, "Is everything okay?"

The man ran to him, panic written all over his face, "Please help me! Someone's chasing after me!"

Minho became alert, "Where are they?"

The man smirked, "Nowhere."

Just like that, Minho's world turned black.

Minho felt himself regain consciousness but didn't open his eyes. He relied on his hearing to at least have an idea of his whereabouts. He can hear dirt hitting the floor. Which means someone is probably digging something up.

Minho froze. Either that person was digging something up... or they were going to bury something.. or someone.

Minho opened his eyes slightly and saw the person's back turned towards him. He soon realized that both his arms and legs were tied up.

_'Of course I'm tied up, why wouldn't I be?'_

Minho silently tried to wiggle but the ropes were too tight on his skin and it burned. Minho looked around to see if there was anything he could use to cut the stupid rope. He saw a few pieces of broken glass a few feet away from him.

Minho glanced at his captor and saw that he was still busy with digging, it wasn't even that deep yet. Minho slowly tried to wiggle his way towards the broken glasses while keeping his gaze at his captor.

After a few more seconds of struggling, he was literally near the glass. But of course, fate wasn't on his side.

"Look who's awake."

Minho's head snapped towards his captor, giving him a death glare.

"What the hell do you want from me?!"

The man chuckled, "You? Not much. Your dead body is enough."

"What did I even do to you?!"

The man's face hardened, "A punishment is ordered, and it must be done."

"What are you talking about-"

"Say goodbye to your boyfriend in your prayers."

The man was about to grab Minho's arm but stopped when he heard the cock of a gun.

"Don't you dare lay a finger on him."

Minho's eyes widened as that voice sounded awfully familiar.

The man smirked, "Jisung, how nice of you to join the party."

Jisung kept his composure, the gun still aimed at the man, "Step away from Minho Youngho."

Youngho mockingly stepped back, his hands raised in surrender. Minho wiggled towards Jisung, settling behind his legs.

"I would've turned you in earlier if I could." Jisung glared at the man before him

Youngho grinned, "Yeah but your dumbass just had to get caught-"

Youngho was cut off by the firing of a gun. He jumped as the bullet went past his leg.

"I hope you know that I never miss."

Guess that firearm training from Minho is starting to pay off.

Youngho regained his composure, "Give it up Jisung. You really think   
I came alone?"

Jisung turned as he heard multiple guns being cocked, all pointed towards him and Minho.

"Well shit." Minho mumbled beside him, now free from the tight ropes

This was the first time Minho felt overpowered. Minus his and Jisung's personal time- but that's a different story.

Minho turned to his side and literally felt his eyes bulge out.

"Officer Yoon!"

The said officer smirked, "Surprised to see me?"

Minho's mouth fell open as he stared at Jisung who wasn't too shock.

"Did you know about this??"

Jisung glanced at Minho for a second before his gaze went back to Youngho, "Why do you think I was staring behind you at the interrogation room?"

"That's right Minho, Officer Yoon is with me. And after we finish Minho off, I'm coming for you Jisung. I'll make sure you have the slowest and most painful death."

"What do you even want from the both of us??" Minho butted in

"Both of you owe me! This bastard broke the contract! I will not let that pass!"

Minho slowly turned to Jisung as soon as he realized, "What contract?"

"Your boyfriend here signed a contract to work under me!"

Jisung growled, "I was tricked! You're a manipulator!"

Youngho was about to yell back but was cut off by Minho who held out his hand, "Wait! Before you yell back..."

Minho turned to Jisung, "What contract?"

Jisung rolled his eyes, "Remember that contract about a job promotion and he was 'sent' by my boss? It was a scam."

Minho gasped, "Ohh, THAT contract. Okay continue."

Youngho rolled his eyes and pulled out a gun from his back pocket, cocking it and aiming it at Jisung, "Time to meet your death Jisung, and I'd happily introduce you to it."

Jisung remained unfazed, "That is, if you succeed."

Jisung whistled and suddenly they were surrounded by police cars. Several cops stepping out of the vehicle, their guns pointed at the rivals. Minho's eyes widened.

_'Jisung called for backup?'_

"You're outnumbered. Drop that gun, and turn yourselves in."

Youngho looked around, his eyes showing fear. He slowly lowered his gun. Jisung started to lower his, but that was a mistake.

"Never."

_Bang!_


	14. [14]

Felix looked at the 3 people pacing in front of him with a deadpan expression. Changbin, Hyunjin, and Chan have been pacing back and forth ever since they arrived and it was starting to get on Felix's nerves.

"If you three don't sit down in 2 seconds, I will personally kick you out of this hospital."

As soon as those words left Felix's mouth, the three immediately sat down. Have you ever been kicked by Felix? If not, don't wish for it.

"I don't get it, what is taking so long??" Hyunjin asked anxiously

"You're acting like this is the first time you waited for medical results." Changbin said with a poker face

Hyunjin glared at the older, "Sorry if I'm too worried."

Chan sighed, "Let's just relax a little. Nothing good will happen if all of us are anxious."

Hyunjin looked up and saw Minho walking towards them, "Minho hyung!"

Chan stood up and ran to Minho, "How's Jisung??"

"So much for not being anxious." Felix mumbled

Minho smiled sadly at the 4, "He's fine. He uh.. hasn't woken up yet. The doctor said it might take a few more hours."

The 4 sighed in relief, "As long as Sung is okay, I'm good." Changbin said

Minho went and sat on the cold waiting room chair, unaware of the others' stare.

"Hyung?.. You okay?" Hyunjin asked, sitting next to Minho with Felix sitting on the other side

Minho bit his lip, "I still don't have a proper explanation of the whole thing. Chief Yang called and said that Youngho was spitting out bullshit."

"What is he saying?" Chan asked, standing in front of Minho with Changbin beside him

Minho sighed, "He said Jisung is a part of the gang and he wanted to take over. So he tried to hurt Youngho."

Changbin's brows furrowed, "But it's not possible for Jisung to be in a gang. He's working full-time as a journalist, he won't have time for that."

"Don't underestimate gangs hyung. Some are store managers yet they're part of gangs." Felix said

"That's true."

"Jisung mentioned earlier that he was tricked into signing a contract."

"What contract?"

"It was over a month ago.. said it was a job promotion.. Jisung said earlier that it wasn't.."

Minho buried his face in hands. He doesn't know what to believe now. In a span of a week, his trust was broken serval times already.

"Officer Lee."

Minho looked up and immediately stood up when he realized it was Chief Yang walking towards him.

"We need to talk."

Jisung opened his eyes, squinting as he tried to adjust to the bright lighting of wherever he is. He blinked repeatedly, trying to get his eyes to cooperate. Jisung realized he was in a hospital room. And there was a doctor standing beside him.

"How are you feeling Mr. Han?" The doctor asked, handing Jisung a glass of water

Jisung took the cup with weak hands and drank the whole glass, "I'm feeling fine, thank you."

"I'm Dr. Park Jihyo. You seem to be in a better condition, you just need to stay here for a few more days to let your wound heal. If you feel discomfort or pain, don't hesitate to tell me or a nurse okay."

Jisung smiled at her, "I will, thank you so much."

Dr. Park was about to leave when Jisung heard her speak up again, "By the way, you might wanna wake him up. He's been sleeping like that for an hour, pretty sure his neck is screaming for him to fix his posture."

Jisung turned beside him and saw Minho sleeping on the chair in an uncomfortable position. He's been sleeping like that for an hour now?

Jisung smiled, "I'll wake him up, thank you."

With a last smile, Dr. Park left the room. Jisung turned to Minho and took in his features. The older's brows were furrowed even as he sleeps. Jisung felt guilty. Minho probably hated him a lot by now.

Jisung reached out and tugged at Minho's arm, "Hyung, wake up. Your neck will hurt."

Minho stirred and slowly blinked his eyes open. He stared at Jisung for a few seconds before realizing the situation.

"Wait you're awake- ow!" Minho winced as he held his neck

Jisung nodded, "Yeah."

Minho pulled a poker face at Jisung, "How's your.. stomach?"

Jisung looked down, "It's okay."

He's right. Minho does hate him.

"Jisung-ah.."

Jisung looked up at Minho, "What really happened?"

Jisung stared into Minho's eyes, taking in the fear and sadness that could be seen in Minho's eyes.

"I was tricked into signing a contract for a job promotion. Turns out it was for a gang. It took a few days before I found out what it really was for but it was too late for me to take it back. They said if I tried to leave... they'd hurt you.."

"I never killed anyone. The reason I took Youngho in that building is because I wanted to terminate the stupid contract before calling you to lock him up. But you got there before I could even work on it."

"Since Youngho got away, he was able to alert the rest of his gang. Officer Yoon is one of them. That's why I couldn't confess in the interrogation room.. because he can kill you on the spot."

"That was my punishment for breaking the contract and trying to hurt Youngho. They'll kill you.."

" **Youngho is the real killer Minho**... **he is Black Mask**.."

Tears started streaming down Jisung's face. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I was scared."

Minho felt relieved and shocked all at the same time. His Jisung was innocent. He never killed anyone.

Minho leaned over and wiped away Jisung's tears, but Jisung only cried harder.

After a few minutes, a knock was suddenly heard making the two turn to the door.

"Han Jisung, may I speak with you?"

"Chief Yang.."


	15. [15]

"You feeling okay?"

Jisung nodded lightly making Chief Yang hum.

"How bad is it?"

Chief Yang put on a thinking face, "Probably an abduction arrest since you did try and kidnap the moron."

Jisung winced, "But... I think it can be handled at court."

"Really?"

Chief Yang nodded, "You had your reasons. You were tricked. And you didn't hurt anyone."

"What about Youngho?"

Chief Yang turned to Minho, "A life-long sentence for sure."

Minho scoffed, "He better not get sick then."

Jisung giggled before groaning, "You have a stomach wound you idiot." Minho said flicking Jisung's forehead

"Wow, is that my 'thank you' for saving your life?"

Minho chuckled, shaking his head, "You better recover fast then."

"I'm glad you two are all good." Chief Yang said with a smile

The couple exchanged smiles, feeling relieved that everything was already solved.

"Hey, Minho, you know what tomorrow is." Chief Yang smirked

Minho groaned loudly making Jisung smile, "I hate paperworks."

"Guys guess what!"

The 6 boys sitting on the cafeteria table looked up as Felix came running towards them.

"Woah hey, why the rush?" Chan asked, holding Felix's arm

"Yeah you look like that one time Chan accidentally shaved his hair instead of brushing it-"

"Okay can we not speak of what happened 2 years ago?" Chan cut Hyunjin off making the boys laugh

"This is even better! You know that little boy I've been trying to save for the past week?" Felix said excitedly

"Let me guess." Jisung smirked

"The suspect just came in this morning!"

The 6 boys cheered and congratulated Felix, "I am so glad the little boy is safe now. I literally felt like punching his dad so bad but I had to suppress."

Minho chuckled at Felix's pouting face, "Sometimes it scares me that you can easily beat up people with your innocent face."

Felix smiled brightly, "Which is why you should never get on my bad side."

"Seriously, never." Changbin groaned

"I can still feel my ribs crying for help." Seungmin winced

Felix was about to tackle Seungmin but was cut off by a voice.

"Nice to see you boys looking relaxed."

The 7 boys turned and saw Chief Yang standing there. All of them rushed to get into a more professional position.

"What's up Chief?" Chan asked

Chief Yang smiled, "I just came for Officer Lee."

Minho felt his shoulders droop, "The next few words after that statement usually don't turn out so well."

Chief Yang placed a folder in front of Minho, "A new case just rolled in."

Minho looked down at the file case and saw it labelled " **The Red Hood Case** ".

All 7 of them suddenly turned to Jisung who was just sipping on his coffee.

"What?? I didn't sign any more contracts!" Jisung defended making the others laugh

Jisung pouted, "The one time I sign the wrong contract."

"Just making sure hyung." Felix laughed

"You better confess now." Hyunjin joked

Jisung stuck his tongue out at the two males making them laugh at his antics.

"This isn't mislinked anymore is it?" Minho said, raising a brow at the chief

Chief Yang smirked, "That's for you to find out."

The 6 boys laughed as Minho rolled his eyes at the chief's statement.

"What do you say Lee?"

Minho was silent for a few seconds before turning to the chief, "How long?"

"You got 3 months."

Minho glanced at the boys and saw them all looking at him expectantly. He turned beside him and saw Jisung smiling brightly at him.

Minho looked up at Chief Yang, "Make it 2."

The boys cheered as Chief Yang chuckled, "How about 1?"

Minho playfully glared at the chief, "Don't push it Chief."

All the boys laughed as Chief Yang gave a few more instructions before leaving.

"You're going to do great baby, I know you will."

Minho smiled, "You better not have accidentally got yourself in another gang again."

Jisung groaned, "Can we like forget that already???"

Changbin chuckled, "It literally happened just last week."

"Give us a few more months hyung.. or years." Seungmin joked

Jisung playfully hit Seungmin's arm but they just laughed at him even more.

Chan saw Minho staring at the table and tried to get his attention, "You okay?"

Minho nodded, "I feel like I should've asked for an extension."

"Oh come on you solved Black Mask in like a week, pretty sure you can do this one." Felix encouraged

"Yeah, plus Red Hood's case is barely a week old. You can do this." Hyunjin added

Minho groaned, "I really gotta get my own coffee machine."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to those who read this story and enjoyed it. 😊 Please look forward to more works in the future and feel free to read through my old ones. 😄


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